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Europe’s fire season used to start in July and finish in September, in a handful of Mediterranean countries.Last year th...
22/09/2026

Europe’s fire season used to start in July and finish in September, in a handful of Mediterranean countries.

Last year the EU recorded at least a million hectares burned, close to double the historical average. This summer around 330,000 people left their homes in France and Spain inside a single month.

The continent has warmed roughly twice as fast as the global average since the 1980s.
Hotter, longer dry spells turn scrub and forest into fuel, and wind does the rest.

The season now starts earlier and runs later, and it is reaching countries that never planned for it.
Adaptation used to sound like a distant word. It is now a line in a lot of European budgets.

[Climate Wise, Forest Fire, Europe, London]

The glass tower is the global symbol of a serious business. It is also, in a hot country, a machine for trapping heat th...
15/09/2026

The glass tower is the global symbol of a serious business. It is also, in a hot country, a machine for trapping heat that then has to be cooled around the clock.

Francis Kere, the first African architect to win the Pritzker, built a primary school in Gando, Burkina Faso that handles extreme heat without air conditioning. Thick clay walls that release heat slowly. A raised roof that lets hot air escape. Ventilation that pulls cooler air through.

The design knowledge for a hotter world already exists. It's mostly held in places that get asked for it last.

[Climate Wise, Climate Action, London]

Climate change reaches most of us through a shopping basket before it reaches us through a headline.Almonds need roughly...
08/09/2026

Climate change reaches most of us through a shopping basket before it reaches us through a headline.

Almonds need roughly four litres of water each. Bananas feed more than 400 million people and are losing ground to fungal disease that thrives in warmer, more humid air. Vanilla is hand-pollinated, flower by flower, and 75 to 80 percent of it grows in one cyclone-exposed country. W**e grapes ripen too fast in heat and lose their acidity.

Smallholders carry this first. We get the price rise. They get the failed season.

Full piece on the blog. Link in bio.

03/09/2026

The hydro plant was the reason we were there. The bridge is what people talk about.

Two villages used to cross this river on a footbridge, and that was the only way over. The project left behind a proper one, plus a road that holds through the season.

School runs. Hospital trips. Pilgrims heading up the mountain.

Carbon gets counted in tonnes. Some of it is easier to see than that.

15/08/2026

When we think about forests, we usually picture trees.

But some of the world's most important forests grow underwater.

The Sunshine Coast project in British Columbia is restoring more than 67,000 square metres of kelp habitat across 25 sites, rebuilding ecosystems that support marine life, strengthen coastal resilience, and create opportunities for Indigenous stewardship and local employment.

Ocean restoration is becoming an increasingly important part of the climate conversation.

08/08/2026

What happens when land is simply given the chance to recover?

At Imire in Zimbabwe, former agricultural land is being restored into indigenous woodland through carefully protected regeneration zones. Young native trees are allowed to establish, habitats begin to rebuild, and the forest gradually returns to doing what healthy forests do best.

Phase one of the project sequestered 8,255 tonnes of carbon, while creating space for biodiversity to recover alongside it.

Some of the most effective climate solutions don't begin with carbon. They begin with people.In Cambodia, a simple ceram...
03/08/2026

Some of the most effective climate solutions don't begin with carbon. They begin with people.

In Cambodia, a simple ceramic water filter means families no longer need to boil drinking water over wood or charcoal. That reduces pressure on forests, lowers household emissions, and improves indoor air quality at the same time.

Today, more than 300,000 filters provide clean water to nearly 2 million people, avoiding around 90,000 tonnes of CO₂ each year. Sometimes, the biggest climate wins come from solving everyday challenges.

28/07/2026

What if volcanic eruptions weren't just natural disasters, but untapped building resources?

Researchers and architects are investigating how molten lava could be directed into moulds and foundations, where it cools into incredibly durable rock. While the idea is still experimental, it opens up new conversations around construction, material innovation, and reducing dependence on carbon-intensive alternatives like conventional concrete.

Sometimes, the future of design begins by looking at nature a little differently.

Design Thinking, Built Environment, Innovation

25/07/2026

At first glance, it looks like a river flowing beneath the sea. In reality, it's a *halocline*, the point where freshwater and saltwater meet inside Mexico's cenotes, creating a striking visual illusion.

Formed over thousands of years as limestone caves collapsed, these natural sinkholes reveal an entire hidden landscape beneath the surface. For divers, it's an experience unlike any other. For the rest of us, it's a reminder that nature often creates the most extraordinary designs.

DesignInNature Geology TravelInspiration

Behind every conservation project is infrastructure.The installation of solar panels at Imire helps power operations usi...
22/07/2026

Behind every conservation project is infrastructure.

The installation of solar panels at Imire helps power operations using renewable energy, reducing emissions while supporting long-term conservation work.

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